Actors Unions May Merge to Increase Clout

Published 7:00 pm, Tuesday, February 25, 2003

The nation's two major actors unions are considering joining forces to increase their clout in the face of changing technology and the consolidation of the entertainment industry.

The Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists have long shared many members, even while pursuing sometimes conflicting agendas.

A merger of the two unions has been discussed and rejected in the past. But in recent years, the consolidation of firms like America Online and Time Warner and the creation of Vivendi Universal have concentrated industry power in fewer hands.

"What we found is that instead of just being a good idea or a convenience, this kind of unity is more and more becoming an absolute necessity," AFTRA President John Connolly said. "If you intend to be able to survive and thrive, you better be united."

Earlier this month, the boards of the two unions approved a framework for consolidation. They are to meet again April 5 to consider a specific business plan and constitution, along with a new name. A vote by members is expected in May, with 60 percent approval by each union required for passage.

The move has been put on the fast track because negotiations begin this fall on a new contract for commercial actors. Other major pacts expire next year.

The futility of working separately came into sharp focus last year when the unions fought over who would represent performers on television shows shot using digital cameras.

Traditionally, SAG has negotiated for performers when TV shows were shot on film, while AFTRA represented actors on shows done using video tape. A complicated agreement also gave SAG jurisdiction over shows shot in movie studios, while AFTRA handled productions done in TV studios.

In a deal negotiated last year among the unions and the Fox network, SAG won jurisdiction over five shows shot with digital cameras, but not before agreeing to let producers pay some actors the lower AFTRA rates _ a compromise that pleased neither union.

Media consolidation has led to drastic cost cuts as companies scramble to reduce debt and justify their mergers. AOL Time Warner, Vivendi Universal and other giants have cut thousands of jobs over the past few years, and producers are expected to be especially cost-conscious when the current pacts with actors expire.

"Our employers have a responsibility to try and generate the greatest income they can, and if they have to pit us against each other to do that, that's their job," SAG President Melissa Gilbert said. "What we have to change is the way we approach that."

In 1985, there were 26 major employers of performers and media artists, according to union officials. Mergers and acquisitions have reduced that number to just six.

"Given the fact that there is already a large crossover among the members and a large crossover of employers, it makes sense to consolidate their (the actors') resources and have a unified voice," said Kent Wong, director of the University of California, Los Angeles Center for Labor Research and Education. "There is clearly more momentum and enthusiasm than there has been in the past."

Already, 60 percent of AFTRA's 80,000 members are also SAG members, while 40 percent of SAG's 120,000 members also belong to AFTRA.

The last merger attempt came in 1999. SAG members vetoed the deal because it would have let broadcasting talent vote on actors' contracts.

To sidestep such turf fights, the two unions are now proposing a unified umbrella group and three autonomous affiliates, representing actors, broadcasters and recording artists. They also are proposing to cut costs by merging health and pension plans.

The unions already have joined independent TV producers in lobbying the Federal Communications Commission to prevent networks from airing only shows that the networks produce, something critics say has squelched diversity in programming and led to a glut of inexpensive "reality" shows.